Abigail Susan and Ellie Jane

Hannah and Garrett's daughters (my beautiful nieces)!

Abby is almost three years old and has such beautiful blue eyes and loves to sing me songs on the phone. I haven't seen her since April, and I can't believe how fast she has grown! I can't wait to see her again!

Ellie - I haven't met her yet (which needs to be fixed ASAP!) But she sure seems like a doll! Look at those chubby cheeks. Just like her Aunt B used to have....(or still has!)

Ellie and Abby

(Thanks, Hannah, for letting me borrow all of these pictures from your blog!)

Hallelujah...

...is the only word I can think of right now.

Hamilton Ralph

This is Shauna and Mike's second baby, Hamilton Ralph, born in July 2009. Look at that face! Who could resist smothering him with kisses and hugs?! I can't wait to meet him!

Thanksgiving Feast

I love Thanksgiving. I love being with family and close friends and celebrating everything we are grateful for. Grandma and Grandpa were in town, so we had a big feast at Jim and Julie's house. We had the traditional meal - turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, yams, cranberry sauce, rolls, homemade stuffing, veggies, nuts and tons of dessert!

Hard at work peeling potatoes

Molly, Aunt Jenny, Elza, and Rebekah

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

The New Do!!

Dear Locks of Love,

You are welcome for the 12 inches of my hair that I had chopped off today. Thanks for the opportunity.

-Molly

BEFORE

AFTER

All I have to say is that I better be down at least a pound when I check my weight in the morning!

My Nephew Carter

This is my handsome nephew Carter Michael. He will be two in December and is a big brother to Hamilton Ralph (his feature posting will be coming up!) He lives in New Hampshire so I don't see him often, but oh how I miss that cute face!

Chop Chop

Today after work I am getting my hair cut. I'm leaning towards a long bob with bangs.
With some highlights or some lowlights. I still can't decide...
I will post before and after pictures when I get back.
Wish me luck!

Painted Kitchen and Door

Here are some pics of the front door and the kitchen. I painted both a few months ago.
The kitchen used to have really dark brown cupboards and goldish-bronze hardware. I also painted the back splash a light khaki green. The door used to be a medium brown color. The kitchen has really lightened up, and I still love the front door! This is for you, Hannah!

Before the new hardware
(you can see the old dark brown color on the bottom cupboards)

All finished
(I later bought a new rug and dish towels)


The reflection is kind of hiding the blue...

Close up of the door

Short posting, but another one to keep the blog rolling. Now I'm off to decorate my house for my favorite season (other than the Christmas season)...FALL!!

Yearbook

I wish I had a scanner so I could put my mom's yearbook pictures next to mine and compare the two...

1998

1996

1990

1988 (year I was born)

1984

1982

1978

1976

1972

1964

1960


1958

1954

1952

Yearbook

Family pictures!! (thanks to yearbookyourself.com)

Can you recognize everyone?

Mike and Shauna

Garrett and Hannah

Garrett and John

Dad, Mike, Molly, Garrett

clockwise from right: Dad, Molly, John, Hannah, Mom, Emma

Molly, Hannah, Emma

Dad and Mom

Update

Yup, I'm alive!

Here are some updates:

-Elza. Elza flew in on Tuesday night, so it's great to have her as a roommate again, even if it's only for a few weeks. I dread finding a new roommate. I will post for one on Craigslist/KSL right when I am done with this update. (Sorry it's taken so long, mumsy...)

PS: Shelby, come back! I don't think I've watched Pride and Prejudice since you left OR the TCM* channel (*Turner Classic Movies)

-My garden. I planted so many things! Corn, peas, beans, zucchini, squash, carrots, and lettuce. So far, I only have zucchini. Nothing else grew! Probably because: 1) mom is not here making me a chore list, which always including weeding the garden (there are so many bees here!) 2) the garden is in the shade most of the day (my bad!), and 3) I'm lazy (probably the most honest reason - and because I hate bees, of course).

-Chris and Marian. I love going over and playing with/babysitting them. Chris and I look at pictures of tractors, play catch with his basketball, give Franklin dog treats, call Grandpa and Grandma, reading lots of books, and watch Backyardigans. Always a fun evening!

- Babies. My sister Hannah and sister-in-law Shauna had their babies in July! I can't wait to meet my new niece and nephew: Ellie Jane and Hamilton Ralph!

-Work. I like my job, and I love the people. I am a front desk manager at a local career college. It can be stressful, but what job isn't? Working with good people makes it all worthwhile.

-Painting. A little, anyway. I painted all of the cabinets and drawers in the kitchen a cream color and bought new hardware. The cupboards were dark brown with gold handles, so it's really lightened it up. I painted the back splash a nice green color, so it just looks fresh and clean. I also painted the front door a medium blue so it pops out against the red brick. I love it! Next project: painting the living room (?). We'll see...

- Home. I'm going home to Pennsylvania and then to Palmyra for a week in September to spend time with my family. I can't wait! I've never flown alone so I'm a bit nervous. (I know, I know, I'm 21 years old. Time to grow up!)

-Walking. My friend from the singles ward I attend (whose name is also Molly S! ) and I have been going walking every morning these past two weeks. So far, so good. We go 3-3.5 miles every day. She pushes me hard some mornings going up those hills but I always feel great afterwards! Watch out family, I'm going to win our Pace Race across the U.S.A.!

-Purging. I have too much stuff. I've decided no more buying lots of cheap shoes in all colors! And no more dishes, I have plenty of sets (plus two more sets stored in the milk house back in PA!) Too many clothes, too many lotions (I keep finding them in different closets and drawers), too much of about everything! Really, who needs 7 pairs of brown shoes?! I only wear 1 or 2 of them. Sick. I am NOT going to become a pack rat. Simplicity! That's what I want!

- Cooking. I'm trying to cook more. Especially now that Kyle isn't around to cook for me anymore (he ALWAYS made the food)! I've decided I need to experiment more and cook. I have so many cookbooks, I just don't use them. Time to start pulling them off the shelves!! I always tell myself to make weekly meal plans. I hate when I find a recipe that I really want to make, and I don't have all of the ingredients! And if I go to the store and buy it, I'm usually not in the mood to make it anymore by the time I get back! It's a rough cycle, I know...

- Reading...or not. I've been going to the library a lot lately. I end up getting about 5 or 6 books, just to return them 3 weeks later after sitting on my nightstand, unopened! I might open and read the first couple pages of each book, but I never finish. I don't know what's happened to me, I used to read ALL THE TIME! I went again tonight and checked out 8 books. We'll see if I finish any this time...

- Church. I am the Relief Society secretary in my ward. I have a new respect for secretaries. It's not just about numbers. You have to keep track of EVERYONE. And it's hard, especially with people moving in and out of the ward all of the time...I don't think I'll EVER have an updated list with everyone. But I love the Presidency I work with, they are awesome and do such a great job.

-Haircut. I got my hair cut and highlighted a few weeks ago. I love it. It was too long and boring, so I got some more layers and chopped off about 4-5 inches. I don't think I've even taken any pics of it, yet! Those will have to come later.

That's all for now. I'll try to keep this more updated and add some more pictures!

Back in April:

Carter on the John Deere!

Chris and Abby

(Abby's stuffed animal MayMay was missing for a while,

and she kept asking "Where's MayMay?")

Family pic

(I don't think I brushed my hair all week...

But we were in the middle of nowhere, so it's ok, right?!)

And the Beat Goes On...

I have not and I never will be a consistent blogger. I've come to terms with that now. I always say I will update more often and I never do, so no more promises!

Here are a few things that have been going on in my life:

-I got a job at Provo College (front desk manager) in February after 3 months of searching. I actually enjoy my job and the people I work with, which is a plus!

-Visiting and playing with Chris and Marian. I wish all of my nieces and nephews lived close by!

-Kyle and I went home to Pennsylvania a few weeks ago and had a mini family reunion with all of my siblings. I can't wait to go back and see everyone again!

-I'm slowly trying to redecorate my house. So far, only the bathroom is done (just new towels and curtains and rug, etc.) But I love the fresh new look.

-I'm taking advantage of living in Utah and visiting all of the sites and museums and activities. Earlier this month I went to Ballet West with some girls in the family and it was great!

-Kyle and I drove to Idaho a few months ago (my first time) to visit his parents. The day we left a blizzard came through, so that was an adventure!

-Last Saturday I (with the help of others) threw a surprise birthday party for Emma. And we pulled it off!!

Here are a few pictures of what's been going on:

Valentines Dinner from Kyle

The old church/reception hall I wanted to buy to turn into an inexpensive reception site for brides. Until I called and found out that it cost $1.3 million...There went that dream.

Only about a 1/5 of how many boots Kyle's parents own.

They had a bunch more shelves full!

Elza and Emma at the "Luau"

The Birthday Girl and me

Playing with Chris at the park

There's the update. Not everything, but enough to keep my blog rolling...

Fondue Night

The other night when Kyle was at an interview I decided to surprise him and make some chocolate fondue. I ran to Maceys and bought everything I needed, along with one extra bar of chocolate. I mixed the chocolate and milk to melt over the heat, and started cutting up the fruits and other food. Unfortunately I forgot about the now-burned chocolate until it started to really smell...Good thing I got an extra bar of chocolate!

Kyle attempting to clean my burnt pan

while the new chocolate melted

The first bite

all of the goods

Party

The other night a group of friends gathered at Emma's house to have a party. Ben and Brandon Jorgensen were there, cousins Nate and Elza, and a few other friends. We had a good time talking, eating food, and playing "Never Trust a Pirate", which is always fun - especially wathcing John squirm and take 5 minutes to decide his next move.

Waiting for somone's next play...

Nate and Elza

(she always knew when the camera was on her somehow)

Chris

Chris, Molly, Elza, and Marian

It was a fun night, and it was great to have old friends all together again for a few hours.